Chapter Fifty-Six: Recruitment Standards!

When Wang Zheng returned home, he found the dining table already set with steamed buns and fried dough sticks. He was certain these weren’t made by Su Xue, as the girl, clad in her pajamas and rubbing her sleepy eyes, had just emerged from the bedroom.

At that moment, Chu Jun walked out of the kitchen carrying two bowls of hot mung bean soup. Upon seeing Wang Zheng, her cheeks flushed faintly, likely reminded of last night’s bath.

“I bought breakfast from outside,” Chu Jun said shyly to Wang Zheng, then retreated into the kitchen.

Wang Zheng glanced at the living room; the chaos from before was gone. It wasn’t exactly spotless, but at least it no longer felt like a pigsty. He looked at the steaming soup on the table—Chu Jun was truly a good child.

Suddenly, a lazy arm draped over his shoulder. Su Xue, utterly lacking any poise, yawned loudly and said, “Brother, just admit it—did you peek at Chu Chu while she was bathing last night?”

“If the men of Jinghua City knew their dream girl, Miss Su Xue, looked this slovenly and disheveled, they’d probably queue up to jump into a lake,” Wang Zheng replied, removing her arm from his shoulder. “Can’t you learn from Chu Chu and be a diligent kid? Judging from how you two ‘ransacked’ the living room, I bet your previous place wasn’t much better than a pigsty.”

He sat at the table, took a sip of the hot soup, letting its warmth soothe his chilled heart.

Su Xue yawned again, stretching with abandon. “Doesn’t matter. I never plan to marry anyway; I’ll just stick by your side forever. Besides, you’re no different from me. Since you moved in, I haven’t seen you do any chores—it's always that ‘female agent’ handling them!”

“She’s gone now, so the housework falls to you. No excuses!” Wang Zheng told her. Spoiled since childhood, it was time she learned some discipline, to prepare for being a good wife someday. She couldn’t really linger here forever, could she? She hadn’t met someone she liked yet; once she did, she’d surely be anxious.

After a simple breakfast, Wang Zheng left home. Today was recruitment day; he arrived earlier than usual, unsure if Bai Bing would show up. With staff already scarce, losing another was a blow—the original trio was now just a duo.

When Wang Zheng arrived at the company, Lin Xiaolei was already there. Upon seeing him, she grew visibly tense, clearly still remembering last night’s incident in the restaurant.

“Eh? Where’s Miss Bai?” Lin Xiaolei asked curiously. Though she didn’t know the exact relationship between Wang Zheng and Bai Bing, ever since meeting Wang Zheng, Bai Bing had become his shadow, always following him. What was different today?

“She… She has some personal matters and probably won’t be coming this year,” Wang Zheng replied evasively.

“Oh. But today’s recruitment—now it’s just the two of us, that’s far too few,” Lin Xiaolei frowned. The plan had been for Bai Bing to manage the recruitment order outside, while Wang Zheng and she handled the interviews. Now…

“I’ll go downstairs and borrow a consultant. Recruitment must go on; we can’t let one person disrupt our plans!” Wang Zheng said, then hurried out.

Lin Xiaolei watched his retreating figure, sensing something different about him today. Normally, he was always cheerful and confident, but now he spoke haltingly, seeming tired and dispirited. What had happened? Was it related to Miss Bai? Had something happened to her?

Although Lin Xiaolei hadn’t interacted deeply with Bai Bing, she was grateful for Bai Bing helping her out of a ‘predicament’ last night, so her mind was full of questions. But she had a severe case of ‘Zheng-phobia’—just not being scolded for last night was a relief. She had no intention of poking the hornet’s nest!

Wang Zheng’s efficiency was impressive; it wasn’t long before he returned, cheerful and chatting, with two women in tow. They were indeed the consultants from the ground floor of Yong’an Tower, just off their shift.

Why would they give up their rest time to help? It turned out that during his days at work, Wang Zheng often wandered the floors of Yong’an Tower, admiring beauties and seeking new opportunities. Sometimes, he’d go to the first floor to ask consultants which companies had the prettiest women, treating them to coffee and chatting. With his good looks, easy manner, and sociable nature, he quickly became friends with them.

Everyone called each other “brother” and “sister”—their bond was deep.

Recruitment began at nine-thirty. Though only twenty-three of the thirty-one invited for interviews showed up, that was plenty for Zhongtian, which only needed a dozen or so.

Wang Zheng and Lin Xiaolei sat in the reception lounge, their roles clear: Lin Xiaolei assessed the candidates’ inner qualities, Wang Zheng judged their external ones—their appearance. Those failing the looks test were firmly rejected. In sales, at least, one needed to be easy on the eyes; if too unattractive, no matter how good your product, people wouldn’t listen.

Lin Xiaolei posed questions to the girls opposite her, while Wang Zheng scrutinized them closely. Standing posture, sitting posture, neat attire, clean and brisk speech.

Good, passed! Wang Zheng drew a big circle on the form before him.

Lin Xiaolei raised her eyebrows—she’d only asked two questions. How could Wang Zheng already have decided?

“So quick to decide?” Lin Xiaolei whispered, covering her mouth and leaning toward Wang Zheng’s ear.

“Yes.”

“Isn’t that too hasty?”

“You do your part; I agree,” Wang Zheng replied, moving on to the next resume.

Lin Xiaolei thought, “You agree? What if I disagree? What then? How do we decide with a one-to-one split? And there are twenty more candidates—was he here to help or to cause trouble? He even speaks as if he’s the real boss.” She straightened herself and turned to the candidate, saying, “You…”

“Congratulations, you’ve passed the interview!” Wang Zheng interrupted, smiling at the girl. “You can report tomorrow… or this afternoon. We’ll provide an internship contract; if you agree, you can sign then. If not, you’ll regret missing such a great company for the rest of your life. Next!”

The girl was stunned, clearly unsure who actually made the decisions between this man and woman. She glanced at Wang Zheng, then at Lin Xiaolei, who had been asking her questions. Never before had she been hired so swiftly. Wasn’t the usual process: “That’s all for today. If you're hired, you’ll be notified within three days”? Wasn’t that the standard?

“I… I really passed?” she asked in disbelief.

“You can pinch your cheek as hard as you like—if it hurts, it’s all real!” Wang Zheng said. “Oh, and when you leave, please act dejected, as if you failed.”

“Why?”

“To create some tension outside. I think it’ll have unexpected results.”

“Thank you!” the girl said politely, though puzzled, keeping her questions inside. When she reached for the door, she recalled Wang Zheng’s words, paused to gather her feelings, and then walked out looking thoroughly crestfallen.

“You…” Lin Xiaolei stared wide-eyed at Wang Zheng, who looked as relaxed as if nothing had happened. If recruitment went like this, what was her role? Yet Wang Zheng’s overbearing conduct left her indignant but unable to protest. She even wondered if she’d brought a wolf into the company.

Still, the girl just now had been excellent in every respect. Maybe Wang Zheng just wanted to save time. Lin Xiaolei tried to comfort herself.

But the reality was far more troublesome. As interviews continued, Lin Xiaolei realized her presence was almost ornamental. After she asked a question or two, Wang Zheng would decide on the spot—stay or go, it was entirely up to him. Some candidates even said goodbye to Wang Zheng as “Manager,” making Lin Xiaolei feel she’d become invisible, or perhaps was never meant to exist in this world.

As for Wang Zheng’s recruitment standards, Lin Xiaolei soon grasped them: no men, pretty women only.

At moments like these, Lin Xiaolei couldn’t help recalling Bai Bing’s words: “You lecher…”